Asian Men's Volleyball Championship 2023: India eliminated after loss against China

Next big assignment will be the Asian Games

The Indian men’s volleyball team lost a close encounter to China (2-3) in the pre-quarterfinals of 22nd Asian Men’s Volleyball Championship. India fought back twice after trailing by a set (0-1) and (1-2) but couldn’t finish the the match on a winning note. China on the other hand, continued their winning spree and are currently on a three match winning streak.

India started the first set pretty well with a three points lead (9-6) but China slowly started to leap forward and in the finishing stages of the set had a four points advantage (23-19). The men in blue fought back to score four straight points to break even at (23-23). From here, both teams scored points successively till (29-29) but in the end it was China who emerged successful to take the opening set (30-29).

The match was squared up evenly post the opening set, with both teams tied up at (11-11). India at the right moment pressed the accelerator and surge ahead to take the second set. The combination play worked out well for India with attackers from both sides of the poles kept switching shots frequently.

As the encounter went by, there were too many twists and turns as China won the third set with India once again bouncing back strong to claim the fourth. China were the favourites to clinch the match at this moment as they had the exposure and knew how to play in pressure situations. However, India never lost hope and kept fighting hard and like the first set both teams kept scoring points alternatively till (13-13).

At (11-12), the referee had awarded a point to China but India took a challenge which resulted in their favour and once again the scores got tied (12-12).

In the end, India made few errors in placing the ball during attack ultimately resulting in a loss. Nevertheless this was a spirited performance from the Indian side at the Asian Men’s Volleyball Championship 2023, who prior to this played competitive matches at the Prime Volleyball League earlier in February – six months back. The next focus for the team will be to perform well at the upcoming Hangzhou Asian Games.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and join our community on Telegram.